Report: Manual Processes Limiting Value of Data in Manufacturing

PALO ALTO, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Manual processes and slow digital transformation within the
manufacturing industry are inhibiting professionals from utilizing data
to improve efficiency and processes, according to a new report.

The report by Plutoshift,
a performance monitoring solution for industrial processes, shows that
nearly half (48 percent) of manufacturing companies use spreadsheets or
other manual data entry documents. As a result, only 12 percent are able
to take action on their data insights automatically.

Manual processes, like spreadsheets and standalone solutions, are still
used to collect and analyze data, creating inconsistent data, causing
cost overruns, and imperiling regulatory compliance. Additionally,
error-prone manual methods are causing mistrust in the data collected
with 37 percent of respondents saying they can’t take action on company
data due to a lack of trust in the accuracy of that data.

To help mitigate these issues, more than three-quarters of manufacturing
professionals (76 percent) identified software solutions that allow them
to analyze data in real-time as a top solution. Over half of companies
rely on other solutions like creating more efficient ways to communicate
updates to people on the line and software that can be integrated with
other systems so all data and information can be viewed in a single
platform.

“The amount of tools available to transform the manufacturing industry
grows every year,” said Prateek Joshi, CEO and founder of Plutoshift.
“But the ability to keep accurate and up-to-date reports on the
performance of processes is paramount. Manufacturers are struggling with
this endeavor, despite the myriad of tools available. They need simple,
reliable solutions to surface insights of their data at the right time
and to make actionable, proactive decisions.”

The risks of not being able to react automatically to data insights
are lack of process improvements (65 percent), lower response time in
informed decision-making (60 percent), and increased waste (59
percent).

The top four types of data collected are quality assurance (67
percent), operational efficiency (64 percent), labor time (63
percent), and cost of materials (63 percent).

Plutoshift provides a performance monitoring SaaS solution for
industrial processes in water, food, beverage, breweries, chemicals,
energy, logistics, and related verticals. The solution enables real-time
tracking, management, and prediction of key cost drivers and resources
critical to industrial processes. Plutoshift’s AI-driven technology and
industry expertise transforms inefficient legacy monitoring into modern
performance monitoring that tracks and delivers accurate and consistent
information in real-time. This information is immediately actionable via
automated decision-making or quick action by managers or operators. This
type of decision-making can only be made when there is confidence in the
information extracted from data – a single version of the truth.
Plutoshift provides a customizable and scalable solution that gathers
and organizes data from multiple systems, giving managers the confidence
to take action to reduce the costs of energy, chemicals and labor, and
minimize safety and compliance risk.